Page 69 of A Vineyard for Two

‘I don’t know. The nurse said something about a significant other. I don’t recall Georgia ever being in a relationship. Come to think of it, whenever someone brought something up in the past, she always changed the subject.’

‘What about Hugh?’

‘Hugh Mathers. As in Mathers Vineyard?’

‘Yeah.’

‘Did they have a thing?’

‘She spent a significant amount of time with him. Even cared for him when he was unwell for almost two years. It’s not a stretch that they could have developed a relationship that went beyond friendship. Hugh was a widower, after all. He’d been on his own for almost two decades. Knowing Georgia, though, she would have added a significant other just for kicks.’

‘It would explain the inheritance,’ she said. ‘I still get the inkling that someone is going to show up and demand it all back. That maybe someone misinterpreted the Will. I mean, we knew Hugh all our lives, but that’s a lot of wealth to just give out to anybody.’

‘I guess we won’t know until Georgia is ready to tell us,’ Zoe said. ‘And what about you, missy? This David character showing up out of the blue to surprise you. Very romantic or very creepy. Who is he?’

‘Ex-boyfriend, nothing to say.’

‘And he came all the way over here.’

‘He didn’t understand that me breaking up with him was permanent. Honestly, I don’t think he was really bothered. He let something slip that makes me think he was doing his secretary not long before I broke it off. No love lost. It was convenient until it wasn’t.’

‘Hmm, he was cute, though.’

‘He had his moments.’ The last thing she wanted to do was talk about David. He’d been a distraction for a while, but she never considered him a serious contender and she’d known that was the case for him as well.

‘So, what are you going to do now? Still driving back?’

‘I called work and told them due to unforeseen circumstances I’m going to have to work remotely for another week, then I’ll see how I go.’

‘Our internet connection is shit.’

‘I noticed,’ she said, taking another sip of wine and wondering how she was going to get through her workload and do her part in bringing back Mathers Vineyard to its former glory.

‘You could try Brookes’. He has the new-age technology that runs really fast. Some satellite thingy. You know me, I’m clueless when it comes to tech. Mathers Vineyard still has it too. Leo mentioned something about Brookes having it reinstalled the other day.’

Harper pulled a face. ‘Not sure that’s a good idea.’

‘Why not?’

Harper raised an eyebrow. ‘Do I have to say it?’

‘You didn’t. You did. Oh, my God. Sis, tell me the details.’

Shaking her head, Harper took another sip of wine. One glass was not going to be enough for this conversation. She topped up her own glass before spilling the beans.

The wine got to her head, and Harper used it as an excuse for a lie down. She didn’t expect to nap, but she fell asleep and was out of it for a solid ninety minutes. Getting to sleep at night was going to be impossible. Maybe she’d get some work done after all. It would take her half a day just to get through the emails if she stayed here. No, she needed something faster if she was to also have time to spend with Georgia. The whole point of staying around was to be able to be with her.

After a bite to eat and several glasses of water, she packed her laptop bag and charger, and headed for the car. It was mid-afternoon, and she decided to give the internet at Mathers Vineyard a chance. At least while there, she could get some more work done on the inn. She still had a list of things to do and time was running out.

She drummed her fingers on the beat of a country song; she couldn’t remember the name, but the beat was good, and the words sang true. They made her think of Brookes in ways she shouldn’t. Her feelings didn’t matter, and she couldn’t give him the wrong idea. The other night had been a huge mistake, no matter how good it felt.

When she pulled up to the driveway, Brookes was locking up the back of his ute and walking towards the house with a towel in his hand.

‘Twice in one day. Must be my lucky day.’

‘Since I couldn’t go back to the city, I have to catch up on some work. The internet connection at the estate is poor and Zoe mentioned the set up here was top of the line.’

‘Yeah, password is behind the modem in the office,’ he said. ’I’ve left some food in the fridge, too. I have to run some errands, but I’ll be back later on. Do you mind if I leave Rover with you?’